Last week, About.com Travel Guides put their heads together to think of the most amazing places they've ever interacted with wildlife. Among the suggestions: cave diving with great white sharks, seeing the slightly misguided penguins in Hawaii, eyeing creepy crawly insects in New Orleans, capturing (on film) the big five in Africa, and my most recent favorite, swimming with stingrays in the Caymans. See all the exotic choices in Animal Attractions.

^{Image copyright Michael Poliza / Wilderness Safaris}

About an hour's drive from New Orleans is a most interesting place to stay. The Myrtles Plantation has a long and storied history (it's on the National Historic Register), but it's not only history buffs who are checking in to this plantation home. The inn is said to be haunted by several spirits, most of them linked to a long-disputed story about Cloe, a slave who went from lover to alleged child murderer.

More: Profile of the Myrtles Plantation | Ghost Stories from the Myrtles Plantation

Guest Stories From the Myrtles Plantation:
"The people were nice and I was scared every second, (but I loved to be scared)..."
"I had a hair raising good time there!!..."
"For my birthday I wanted to stay in a haunted inn..."
"My mom's friend took a picture when no one was outside the hotel..."
"If you like the paranormal this is the place for you..."

Despite my fears, I was brave enough to spend a couple of weeks in California, staying in haunted hotels and touring haunted spots. It was mostly fun, occasionally nerve wracking, and I didn't get much sleep. See what happened when I spent the night in three different haunted hotels.

A Night in a Haunted Hotel:
Napa River Inn
Queen Mary Hotel
Hotel del Coronado

Tips for Staying Overnight:
Before You Spend the Night in a Haunted Hotel
How to Take Pictures of Ghosts

More: Haunted Hotel Pictures from Guests | Haunted Hotels

^{Image of a spraypainted warning at the Queen Mary Hotel © Charlyn Keating Chisholm}

Halloween's coming - are you in the mood for a fright? I can brave most horror movies, but spending the night in a haunted hotel can seriously creep me out. If you're considering it, be smarter than I was and bring a friend. A brave friend. And let me know how it goes.

How to Find Haunted Hotels
Haunted Hotel Rooms
Haunted Hotel Pictures
Top 10 Haunted Hotels in the United States
Haunted Hotels A-Z

More: Haunted Hotels | Haunted Hotels in the UK

^{Image from the spooky propeller room at the Queen Mary Hotel © Charlyn Keating Chisholm}